Don't blame the playoff system, or fate, or injuries for the tricky tasks facing the higher seeds in the conference semifinals. Blame the policies of MLS that restrict teams to an 18-man roster and a $2.1 million salary cap despite a burdensome schedule of regular-season, Open Cup, playoffs and international ... Read the whole story

[MY VIEW] FIFA's decision to abandon the rotation system for awarding future World Cups might very well cost the USA the chance to host the World Cup in the near term. The flaw with FIFA's policy of awarding the World Cup to countries from different confederations was very much evident ... Read the whole story

[WOMEN'S WORLD CUP] Germany beat out Canada for the right to the host of the 2011 Women's World Cup. The decision, announced by FIFA president Sepp Blatter following a meeting of the executive committee on Tuesday in Zurich, comes exactly one month after Germany successfully defended its Women's World Cup ... Read the whole story

MLS has announced three finalists for each of its end-of-season awards. Juan Pablo Angel, Cuauhtemoc Blanco and Luciano Emilio are the candidates for MLS MVP and the new Newcomer of the Year Award. There's also Rookie of the Year, Defender of the Year, Goalkeeper of the Year and Coach of ... Read the whole story

With a 4-2 win over South Florida rival Schulz Academy, Miami FC Kendall moved to 5-0-1 in the U-15/16s division in the inaugural U.S. Soccer Development Academy. Other weekend highlights included hat tricks by Cesar Avalos for Birmingham and Matthew Tobin for the Clearwater Chargers in the Chargers' 6-4 win ... Read the whole story

In its first action of the two-year cycle leading up to the 2009 Under-20 World Cup, the U.S. U-18 boys national team fell to host France, 3-1, on Tuesday night at the Limoges Tournament. Read the whole story

[AMERICANS ABROAD] Defender Gregg Berhalter and forward Josh Wolff helped 1860 Munich down fellow Second Division club Mainz 05, 2-1, in the second round of the Germany Cup. Right back Steve Cherundolo played 120 minutes for Hannover, which went down, 2-0, to fellow First Division club Schalke 04 in overtime. ... Read the whole story

[VIDEO] Click HERE video of Freddy Adu's first goal for Benfica in Portuguese league play, the winner in a 2-1 victory last Sunday over Maritimo. Adu scored six minutes after entering the game in the 80th minute. Read the whole story

"Two backs, I need two midfielders and I need two quality strikers. I think this club and its supporters need different kinds of players to excite them." -- Toronto FC coach Mo Johnston, whose contract was renewed despite the team's last-place finish in MLS, announces slight changes to the squad he put together for the club's inaugural season. (MLSNet.com) ...More